Queen Kuueru

"I know, right, Ice? It all happened so suddenly, that I thought someone was telling me an elaborate joke at first," Polaris spoke as he strolled through one of the many hallways in his illustrious palace on Mitra. Though nobody was walking alongside him, there was a recipient of the conversation - and it was I-CE, an artificial intelligence built on the basis of a Frost Demon which Polaris and a mysterious ogre (@lute) encountered together on Shion. And now, it was present across Mitra's elaborate computer network, serving as the Emperor's AI assistant, secretary and overseer of Mitra all at once.

"Perhaps we had underestimated the stability of the Planet Trade Organization while watching the events unfold from the side." the artificial intelligence replied, speaking from one of the many lined up tiny speakers on the walls in a soft female Frost Demon voice.

"Oh, absolutely. I wouldn't have expected the Saiyan War to have had this much of an impact on their stability. It makes sense in retrospect, though - Frieza #79 had always been one of the most prized worlds in the PTO's collection, so losing it in such a stalemated fight is not only a heavy blow to their numbers and industrial capacity, but also to their prestige."

"Let's not forget the death of Lord Glacio, either."

"Indeed. I imagine that many of the species living under the Frieza Force belt realized that the Frost Demon duo is not as invincible as they had imagined at that very moment."

"Perhaps. If I was in your position right, I would consider putting a halt to the war against the Saiyan Dominion and instead divert our forces to establishing dominance over the remnants of the Frieza Force. They are currently dominated by weak, infighting warlords and many of its citizens would prefer the stability that an Imperial intervention would bring. Best to intervene soon, before a regional power arises from those ashes."

"It's certainly a valid approach, Ice, but I think farther than that. Right now, the Dominion is the greatest threat to the Empire. It is the only faction in the Galaxy which is able to field forces capable of standing against the full might of the Imperial Army, and as such needs to be eliminated before they strike us first. If the Dominion falls, there will be no chance of a threatening anti-Imperial coalition forming. Earth and the Saiyans may cooperate, but Earth and the Frieza Force can't."

"If that's how you wish to approach this, then fine by me."

"But don't worry, the East Quadrant won't get to wait too long for the Ultramarines bringing some actual stability and competence."

By now, Polaris had reached the room where he was supposed to meet with Kuueru, stopping in front of the door and finishing his sentence. I-CE did not respond, so the Frost Demon opened the door to see the familiar Earthling girl sitting on one of the chairs surrounding the conference table. Perfect. He won't have to wait.

"Welcome to Mitra, Kuueru," Polaris spoke, closing the door and sitting down on the chair on the other side of the table. "What's your impression of my little pearl? The planet, I mean."

(535 words)

Queen Kuueru

At the very least, Polaris could be glad that Kuueru followed instructions. He feared that the two point program of "don't show up as a demon" and "don't destroy anything" might be a little too vague for someone who hasn't exactly shown herself to be the sharpest crayon in the crayon box, and yet here we are. The demoness was in her Earthling form, only her eyes revealing the fact that it was only a disguise, and there were no acts of destruction reported either, else I-CE would have definitely informed him.

So far, so good. As Kuueru gave her brief thoughts and opinions on what she had seen of Mitra so far, Polaris pulled out a small package of documents and contract papers and began reviewing page after page to make sure that all of the information was written correctly, all while periodically raising his eyes to keep tabs on what the demoness was saying. Truth be told, this is quite a unique case, Polaris handling the paperwork for an Ultramarine recruit all by himself. Usually, this type of work is delegated to the many dispersed Imperial Recruitment Stations, at least a few on each planet. However, Polaris made the mistake of inviting Kuueru to Mitra directly and thus had to reap what he sowed.

Obviously, Kuueru was not your average recruit. Demons in the Imperial Army, or in this galaxy in general, are a very rarely seen occurrence. So maybe it's actually best that Polaris is the one who handles the paperwork for her. Who knows what might happen if she had to deal with an overworked and bored recruitment officer instead.

"Oh, it's gone past just a simple militia, I would say - but I appreciate the compliment regardless." the Frost Demon replied, taking a brief break from shuffling papers around in his hands. "I've said this to Lute and I'll say it to you, compliments of my rule are not common nowadays. Few people can swallow the truth and understand that this galaxy needed some stability through iron fisted rule after centuries of chaos."

Alright, there's not much left... Soon, he'll be able to hand the contract to Kuueru and let her review it.

How ironic. Getting a demon to sell her soul to you. Metaphorically, of course.

"You know, after this is said and done, you might want to seek out one of your comrades," Polaris muttered, his eyes scanning through a page as he did so. "I believe her name is Kusubu - she's a demon, just like you. I think you two might be the only ones in the Imperial Army, actually. You two would be able to learn a lot from each other. And not just because you represent different parts of the temperature spectrum, either."

(463 words, total 998 words)

Queen Kuueru

...Okay, what the heck, Kuueru. Everything was so simple up until now. And now, while talking about an Ultramarine's privileges and what her new position will entail, you suddenly just had to make a suggestive comment about having access to the Emperor's private chamber at night. Polaris cringed at the thought, raising his eyes from the paperwork and putting up a smirk. This wasn't even the first time she acted suggestive - does the whole "unless you want to make me a demon empress?" exchange from earlier not come to mind right now?

What, is he recruiting a succubus right now?

Which, if you think about it, would be a useful asset for the Imperial Army - but not for the front lines, of course. The Dark Ops of the Galactic Patrol, now reformed into the Dark Ops of the First Galactic Empire, had a number of success stories of their female agents using their... body assets to infiltrate enemy leadership and squeeze out information, or even acquire footage of the act and use it as a negotiations chip to intimidate the other side into submission. And a succubus would be perfect for such missions.

Obviously, Kuueru was joking, so it's not like Polaris was about to throw out the whole package of papers into the nearest rubbish bin and drag the demoness into the Dark Ops command center on Abbayor. But it was interesting to think about.

"I have a wife, you know. And two children. Are you sure you want to challenge Eis for this position? She can get quite fierce if met with opposition." Polaris replied, trying to hold himself back from laughing, then suddenly calmed down and went back to his standard official tone. "I'll be simple and brief - there will be more in detail in your work contract. As an Ultramarine, you will be assigned into a platoon of your fellow soldiers and take on missions under the others of your commander in chief, through his generals and commanders. Someone of your power level, however, will not be a mere grunt in the army, but be assigned to lead a platoon into battle. If you show success in combat, both you personally and your division, there is room for promotion to commanding a brigade, division, or even an army. Fairly simple, as you can see."

"Outside of missions, you will be able to spend your time anywhere in the Galaxy, as long as you may be called up by the high command in a short notice. I recommend to establish yourself on Mitra, however, where you will be assigned living quarters and will be able to use any of the facilities on the planet. These include, but are not limited to, training grounds and gyms for improving your skills, research and development facilities for any gadgets you might need, plenty of bars, restaurants and any other type of leisure you might think of, and plenty of chances to socialize with your comrades. Plus, unlike everywhere else in the galaxy, everything here is free of charge."

Polaris had found that funding everything on this planet out of the Empire's pocket and making it free for his soldiers, albeit costly, helps a lot in improving morale and battle readiness. And in this harsh, unforgiving Galaxy, every little advantage helps.

The Frost Demon handed the package of papers to the demoness on the other side of the table, then leaned back.

"I assume you can read, so I'll just let you analyze this contract on your own. We had a few cases of recruits whose home worlds never developed a writing system."

(603 words, total 1601 words)

Queen Kuueru

After the awkward exchange and flirting, Kuueru decided to touch a yet another not all that comfortable regime - the approval polls of Polaris's regime. From the Frost Demon's earlier off-hand comment about many people failing to realize the benefits of strongman rule, she must have inferred that the Empire was not liked by the people - this misinterpretation needed to be connected, and instantly.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, Kuueru - the people love their Emperor." Polaris began to speak while Kuueru was reviewing the contract, folding his arms and looking to the side. "I had been developing a cult of personality even before the establishment of the Empire. Millions of people across the Galaxy knew me as the Hero, an example of all of the virtues the Galactic Patrol sought to embrace, and savior of millions against the evils lurking beyond. It's not hard to develop from that, is it?"

Indeed, all of the newly erected statues of Emperor Polaris in any larger town would tell you that the Empire was getting a little... fanatical. Truth be told, Polaris didn't have any concrete data on just what percentage of the Imperial population supported his rule and how many only flowed with the rhythm or pretended to support the regime, as is common in many totalitarian dictatorships. After all, attending rallies and the Emperor's speeches on your planet was not a question of choice. However, ever since the Patrol "loyalist" refugees fled from Imperial territory into Earthling lands, things have been stable across the whole Empire. No sight of rebellion, even the most minor pirates have been stamped out by Ultramarine punitive expeditions, which has allowed the Empire to mobilize all of its resources for the war against the Dominion.

Speaking of the Patrol "loyalists"...

"It's just that there has been plenty of external resistance to my rule. There is an ever-present fear of a multinational coalition directed against the Empire. The Earth has broken diplomatic ties with Abbayor, the Dominion is waging war against us... And the worst part is - they're fostering traitorous sentiments within our ranks. Ever since the establishment of the Empire, fractions of the old Patrol have raised the banners of rebellion, and many of their members escaped to Earthling territory to direct this insurgence from there. I believe they call themselves 'Valkyries'."

The growing fear of a Valkyrie infiltration of his ranks had been slowly eroding at Polaris's psyche and drawing out a deep hidden feeling of paranoia ever since he first heard of Gadon's rebellion.

Maybe he could purge some of the Imperial Patrol ranks if this gets out of hand. Those ungrateful bastards have been doing nothing but fostering rebellion against his rule...

Eh, maybe another time. Polaris turned his sights towards Kuueru.

"But I guess I have been monologuing too much, haven't I? You'll learn about this from first hand experience once you officially join our ranks. Just a hint - if you ever come across a particular white-haired gynoid (Audrey) or a Tuffle child in uniform with a drone army by her side (Colonel Pricota), then you're free to shoot. Just shoot, leave them dead in a ditch somewhere. I'll even give you a reward if you do."

Kuueru soon handed the signed contract back - Polaris put it in a folder for record keeping - and made an off-hand joke about hoping to not find it full of mold and corpses. The Frost Demon snickered in response.

"As long as you don't drag any corpses into that room yourself, you should be safe. Should I give you a tour of the planet or have you already snuffed out what you need?"

(606 words, total 2207 words)

Queen Kuueru

Kuueru agreed to the proposal to have the Emperor make a personal tour of the planet, or at least the parts of the planet which mattered. Truth be told, Polaris wasn't sure why he was giving the demoness such a favor, especially when he could be doing a million other things right now. And yet, he chose to make that offer and was going to swallow it all.

"You're lucky that there isn't anything demanding my attention right now. So, you're right, having me take you on a personal tour of Mitra is something not worth passing. Perfect opening to get that autograph you wanted, don't you think?"

With that comment said and done, Polaris stood up from his seat, leaving the folder with Kuueru's contract on the table for his secretary to come, pick up and store sometime later, then gestured with his hand to get the demoness to follow her as he walked out of the room. First stop - a brief tour of the Imperial Palace and then heading straight towards the Mitra Spaceport.

The Imperial Palace was a marble of architecture and engineering Polaris was the most proud of on this entire planet. Its size alone was enough to intimidate anyone who happened to be passing by. The primary tower of the palace extended past the planet's thin atmosphere and into outer space - for a scale of just how large the entire beat was, it's enough to remember that the thumb of Polaris's statue on the top of the palace was fifty meters tall. To make sure that the palace was not a weakness to Mitra's defenses, a thin, but powerful force field dome surrounded the entire structure, also capturing enough air to make the environment here lush, warm and slightly humid, necessary for the courtyard and park sprawling around the palace.

Polaris did not bother to show everything in this palace - it had enough rooms to house an entire division, even though ninety nine percent of them were left unused - but he did lead Kuueru to present a few things. The throne room, where Polaris would accept the most illustrious and important foreign guests and use the fancy interior as a form of aesthetic intimidation, the dining room, again for meeting and dining with guests, though this time both domestic and foreign, and the front courtyard, which led directly towards the horizontal elevator to take the due to the Mitra Spaceport.

A real tourist guide would probably spend at least half an hour describing the palace and all of its main features, tell story after story about the palace's history, past inhabitants and interesting tales, but Polaris was not only not interested in any of that, but couldn't talk about this palace's history even if he wanted to, as everything here had been constructed so recently. Polaris never planned to rule his Empire from Abbayor and the Galactic King's palace there, it was too shabby to him, the future conqueror of the entire Galaxy. The old Palace has been torn down and razed, Abbayor turned into an industrial world and a military production behemoth, and the instruments of government moved to Mitra and its Imperial Palace. How many stories could you tell about a palace which has only existed for a year?

So Polaris instead only briefly introduced Kuueru to each of the main rooms, gave a brief overview of what it was about, and gave the demoness some time to explore and see for herself before moving on. As such, the tour of the Palace did not take long, and soon enough, the duo was in a horizontal elevator, travelling a few meters under the mechanical planet's "surface" at dozens of kilometers every second. The Spaceport was on the other side of the planet, but the trip only took about two or three minutes. The "surface" of the planet, visible through the glass walls of the tube Polaris and Kuueru's elevator was traveling through, was dotted with kilometers upon kilometers of steel domes, each one with a few windows, a few with light filtering through them. Those were the living quarters of the Ultramarines. Polaris didn't bother pointing that out, however - it's not something Kuueru hadn't seen if she came to the planet through the Spaceport and had to board an elevator.

The Mitra Spaceport was perhaps the most defining feature of the planet, as from an outsider's perspective, it appeared as if the planet had put on two massive horns. Those "horns" housed the hangars, repair facilities, construction facilities and testing grounds of the Imperial Fleet. At its maximum peacetime capacity, it could house a few divisions of cruisers, as only a small part of the horns were dedicated to storing spaceships - however, should Mitra be under threat or have to enter wartime mobilization, that number wold increase by a lot.

Maybe not enough to have room for all of the spaceships in the Galaxy, but certainly a lot.

The real Spaceport was below the horns, in an open "eye" between them. This was where civilian ships had clearance to land, refuel and repair.

"This is the Mitra Spaceport. You'll see this sight plenty of times in the future - this is where you and your platoon will embark spaceships to travel to missions, or where they will land after finishing them. The layout is pretty simple, the civilian spaceport is of circular shape with landing pods in the center and all the maintenance facilities around them, as you can see." Polaris explained, hands placed in his pockets. Hundreds of aliens of various of species, most of them wearing dark blue Ultramarine uniforms, could be seen all across the spaceport, some tending to spaceships, others chatting or having a cup of coffee at the nearest cafe.

"This is also the center of Mitra's horizontal elevator system. From here, you can reach pretty much any important facility on the planet. The gyms and training fields, the palace, the leisure district, the diners, the sports district, all the Ministries and government offices, so on and so forth... Is there anything you would want to visit in particular?"

Polaris also made sure to inform Kuueru about something else. "And if you have questions, please ask, I will answer to the best of my ability."

(1047 words, total 3254 words)

Queen Kuueru

Kuueru seemed content with Polaris's planetary tour, and didn't lay out any demands on what she wanted to see next - although she did explain on what places might interest her, this being food and leisure. No questions, either. Fine by him. Though Mitra may appear intimidating at first sight, being one of the first megastructures of this size and having so many places to visit, it really wasn't difficult to figure out once you get used to the rhythm. All of the facilities and amenities on the planet were carefully grouped and ordered according to purpose, the transportation system was easy to figure out, so anyone exploring the Mitra would probably find what he needs within a few hours. Maybe even less, if he was already used to the layout.

So maybe it's a better idea to just leave Kuueru here and let her figure out the rest? Perhaps that's even better than just a guided tour. Would the demoness really be interested in, I don't know, the planet's chapel? Probably not. Best let her figure out what she would be most interested in, then.

Kuueru followed her replies by offering to answer any questions Polaris might have. The Frost Demon didn't have much interest in the demoness's personal life or interests - as long as they did not contradict the ever present ethic of complete loyalty to the Emperor, don't want any of his grunts plotting to overthrow their ruler or something - but he did have a few questions.

"Fine by me, then." Polaris responded to Kuueru's thanks for the trip, nodding slightly out of courtesy. It doesn't hurt to show a little bit of respect to your subordinates - it's a good motivator, even for the cannon fodder. "If you're interested in adjusting to Mitra's life and trying out some of the amenities yourself, then perhaps we can consider putting an end to this tour? There's still plenty to show, but it might drag on for hours, and I figure you'd be a lot more interested in figuring it all out by yourself."

"I do have a question to ask you, however." the Frost Demon suddenly changed the topic, glancing into Kuueru's eyes directly. "I think I've explained this before, but as an Ultramarine of this power level, you will be assigned as the commander of a platoon of your fellow Ultramarines. Don't worry, it's not as complicated or dificult as it sounds. So, I have to ask - do you have any preferences on the species your soldiers will be? The Empire does not endorse species-ism, but I won't scold you if you're not comfortable with serving alongside someone..."

(440 words, total 3694 words)